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Visit your favourite diner and you'll see a range of classic hot sandwiches represented, such as Reuben, clubhouse and hot beef, three of my favourite types. Today I'll let you know some of the history of these popular creations and offer recipes to make them.

With regard to the Rueben, food historians offen different takes on who invented it.

What the service staff brought was fixings to make sandwiches. The sandwich Kulakofsy created, a combination of rye bread, corned beef, Swiss cheese and sauerkraut, was a hit with his fellow card players. One of them was hotel owner Charles Schimmel who put it on the hotel menu and called it a Reuben.

Another story says Arnold Rueben created the Reuben in New York in 1927 or 1928. The entrepreneur owned a deli in Manhattan, called, you guessed it, Rueben's.

There's a whole lot more to both stories and not enough room to write about it here. For lovers of this sandwich, though, we are just glad that somebody did invent it. In my recipe the corned beef and sauerkraut are accented with three types of tangy cheese and a flavourful, homemade Russian dressing.

According to one of my favourite websites, foodtimeline.org, gravy-slathered, sliced beef topped sandwiches have long been popular in the U.S. and from region to region have had different names. For example, in the upper Midwest they were known as roast beef commercials. In the central Midwest they were known as roast beef Manhattans, and on both coasts they were called hot roast beef sandwiches.

In Canada, these filling, easy-to-make sandwiches are usually just called hot beef sandwiches.

No matter what you call them, they are still popular. In my recipe, the beef is piled in a bun and topped with rich gravy adorned with onions and whole-grain Dijon mustard.

According to a story by Linda Stradley on the website whatscookingamerica.net, the name clubhouse sandwich likely arose because of its popularity at resorts and country clubs. She writes that the most popular theory is that the sandwich first appeared in 1894 at the famous Saratoga Clubhouse, located at the Saratoga racetrack in New York — the place potato chips were also said to be invented.

The first published recipe for the sandwich appeared in the 1903 edition of Good Housekeeping Everyday Cook Book. To make it, you buttered a toasted bread slice. On one half you put a thin, broiled slice of bacon, on the other side you put a slice of white turkey or chicken meat. Over one half of the bread the book instructs you to place a circle cut from a ripe tomato; on the other half goes a leaf of lettuce. These fillings then get topped with mayonnaise and you complete this delicious "whole meal" sandwich with another buttered piece of toast.

Today, clubhouse sandwiches are sold in thousands of North American restaurants and still feature those same fillings, except that three slices of bread, not two, are usually used to make it. You'll also see variations of the clubhouse sandwich, such as my recipe today, which uses a spicy shrimp salad to replace the turkey or chicken.

In this version of a clubhouse sandwich, a nicely spiced shrimp mixture replaces the turkey or chicken. To toast the bread more quickly, place the slices on a baking sheet and use your oven's broiler to toast each side.

Preparation time:

20 minutes

Cooking time: About 10 minutes

Makes: 3 to 4 servings

300 grams cooked salad shrimp, thoroughly patted dry

3 Tbsp mayonnaise

2 green onions, thinly sliced

1/2 tsp Cajun spice, or to taste (see Note)

1 Tbsp fresh lime juice

9 slices white or whole-wheat bread

butter to taste

6 slices hickory smoked bacon, each halved widthwise (see Note)

9-12 slices ripe tomato

3 leaf lettuce leaves

Combine shrimp, mayonnaise, green onion, Cajun spice and lime juice in a bowl. Crisply cook the bacon, and then drain well. Toast the bread and then butter one side of each slice. Divide and spread the shrimp on the buttered side of three of the bread slices. Top each with four, half slices of the bacon. Now top the sandwiches with another bread slice. Set a lettuce leaf on each of those bread slices and divide and top with the tomatoes.

Set on the remaining bread slices, buttered side down. Secure the sandwiches with toothpicks, if desired, and cut each one into four quarters. Serve three to four sandwich quarters per serving.

Note: Cajun spice is sold in bottle or bags in the spice/herb aisle of most supermarkets. The hickory smoked bacon used in these sandwiches was made by Freybe.

Hot Beef Bunwiches with Mustard Onion Sauce

Thinly sliced beef, piled in a bun and slathered with tangy mustard onion sauce. Best eaten with a knife and fork!

Cooking time: About 70 minutes

Makes: 4 servings

1 3/4 lb. top round roast

1 1/2 Tbsp olive oil

salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

1 medium to large onion, halved and thinly sliced

2 Tbsp all-purpose flour

1 3/4 cups beef stock

1/2 to 1 tsp chopped fresh rosemary (optional)

2 to 3 Tbsp whole grain Dijon mustard (see note)

4 hamburger or kaiser buns, halved and warmed

Preheat the oven to 425 F. Place the roast in a 10-inch cast-iron or other ovenproof skillet. Brush with the oil and season with salt and pepper. Roast 20 minutes. Reduce heat 325 F; roast the beef 30 to 40 minutes more, or until rare to medium rare. (The internal temperature in the centre of the roast when checked with an instant-read thermometer should be 130 F. Cook the beef 10 minutes longer if you like it medium in doneness.)

Place the roast on a plate, tent with foil and rest 10 minutes. Place the skillet, with the pan juices, on the stovetop over medium, to medium-high heat. Add the onions and cook until softened, about 5 minutes. Mix in flour and cook 2 minutes more. Slowly, while stirring steadily, mix the stock. Add the rosemary, if using, bring to a simmer, simmer a few minutes, and then mix in the mustard.

Set the bottom halves of the buns on plates. Thinly slice the beef and divide and mound it on the bottom buns. Top the beef with the sauce. Set on the top buns and serve.

Note: Whole-grain Dijon mustard is a coarser type sold alongside the bottles of smooth, regular Dijon mustard at most supermarkets.

Rueben Sandwich with Russian Dressing

This deluxe version of a Rueben sandwich sees corned beef accented with three types of cheese and a tangy dressing.

Preparation time: 15 minutes

Cooking time: 8 to 10 minutes

Makes: 2 sandwiches

For the Russian dressing

1/3 cup mayonnaise

2 to 3 Tbsp finely chopped sweet mixed pickles

1 Tbsp ketchup

1/8 tsp paprika

splash of Worcestershire sauce and red wine vinegar

freshly ground black pepper to taste

Combine all ingredients in a small bowl. Cover and refrigerate until needed.

For the sandwiches:

4 slices of dark rye bread

1 Tbsp butter

1/3 lb. (150 grams) thinly sliced corned beef

3/4 cup well drained sauerkraut

1 to 1 1/3 cup mix of grated Swiss, gouda and havarti cheese

Lightly butter one side of each bread slice. Set 2 of the slices, buttered-side down, on a work surface. Spread the top of those bread slices with Russian dressing to taste. (Save any leftover dressing for another time).

Now top those slices each with a 1/4 to 1/3 cup of the cheese. Divide and top the cheese with corned beef and sauerkraut. Top the sauerkraut with the remaining cheese. Set on the remaining two bread slices, buttered side up. Set a non-stick skillet over medium-low heat. Set in the sandwiches and slowly grill 4 to 5 minutes per side, or until the cheese is melted and the sauerkraut and corned beef are heated through. Cut each sandwich in half and enjoy.

Eric Akis is the author of the best-selling Everyone Can Cook series of cookbooks.

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Hot, meaty sandwiches with a saucy difference

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